The subject matter described and/or illustrated herein relates generally to electrical connectors, and more particularly, to electrical connectors having multiple receptacles that each includes a center contact and a ground shield.
Some electrical systems and devices today are designed to include electrical connectors having multiple receptacles along a panel of an electrical system and/or device, such as a portable computer. For example, QSL RF connector systems may have multiple receptacles that each includes a center contact and a ground shield that surrounds at least a portion of the center contact. The receptacles allow an operator of the system to establish an electrical connection between the electrical connector and a peripheral device (for example, an RF antenna). The peripheral device and electrical connector may be electrically connected by mating a cable of the peripheral device with the receptacles in the electrical connector. Specifically, electrical contacts in a mating connector of the cable engage the center contact in each of the receptacles of the electrical connector to electrically connect the peripheral device to the electrical connector.
When the electrical connector and the mating connector of the cable are being mated, opposite charges at the connector interface may result in an electrostatic discharge (ESD) between the connectors. In some circumstances, ESDs can be generated simply by a person approaching or touching the connector interface or touching the center contacts or ground shields. Generally, very little current is associated with an ESD; however, the voltage can be high enough to damage or destroy certain types of electrical devices, such as semiconductor devices. For example, when the center contacts of the electrical connector are electrically connected to a circuit board, an ESD may damage or destroy electrical devices on the circuit board.
There is a need for providing ESD protection to an electrical connector having multiple receptacles that each includes a center contact and a ground shield.